PMC also showed these new in- and on-wall speakers. The Wafer 1 sells for $1199 each (on-wall version) and the Wafer 2 for $1799 (on-wall). The demo was a bit atypical of how the environment of the speakers in an actual installation, but they still sounded quite good. The speakers are actually loaded into transmission lines, despite their small size.

The Venetian, the new home of the Specialty Audio and Video exhibits, was primarily a two-channel oasis. Here (and below) are two highlights. I didn't get into many of the rooms; if I peeked in and there didn't seem to be screen there, I had to move on, as time was very short and the two-channel exhibits there are being thoroughly covered by our sister publication, <I>Stereophile</I>. But I did check out a few rooms that prior experience suggested might be prime. The VTL-Avalon room was one of them. The system sounded pristine through VTL's vacuum tube electronics and Avalon Acoustics Eidolon Diamond speakers.

TACT, one of the first companies to offer sophisticated room correction, now adds Dynamic Room Correction. It adjusts the equalization to provide optimum response as you change the setting of the volume control. Older audiophiles might think of it as a sophisticated loudness control. The system will be built into the company's two-channel RCS 2.2 XP processor first, but will ultimately find its way into a redesigned surround pre-pro (now on hold pending the arrival of HDMI 1.3). TACT has also improved its user interface, making it faster to arrive at an optimum target curve.

The 2007 line of Sherwood Newcastle AV receivers tops out with the R-972 ($1499.95, summer). Offering 100Wx7 into 8 ohms, it also will accept all of the new audio formats directly through its HDMI 1.3 link and decode them internally (rather than relying on the player to first convert them to PCM). Internal Faroudja processing will deinterlace and/or scale all sources to 720p, 1080i, and 1080p, as directed. The unit also includes Audyssey MultEQ XT EQ.

There weren't a lot of video projector demonstrations on the show floor at the convention center (booth prices are reportedly up significantly this year, and projector demos appear to gravitate increasingly to the custom install CEDIA EXPO in September). But one of the best demos was put on by Optoma. The projector was the HD81 LV (about $10,000, available late spring). A special version of the current HD81 1920x1080 projector, the new model is similar to the old, but uses a more powerful lamp, a different color wheel, and a different iris. It may also be equipped with an optional anamorphic lens ($12,999 for the HD81 LV projector with lens, $4000 for the lens if bought separately). The lens may also be used with the basic HD81. The HD image from <I>Phantom of the Opera</I>, from Blu-ray, with the anamorphic lens in the system, was stunning.

Polk announced a gaggle of new products, including a redesigned RTi series and 10 new powered subwoofers. Shown here is the line-topping DSW microPro series subs, in 8", 10" and 12" sizes, with the largest priced at $1850. The DSW microPro is said to compensate for room modes without using equalization. How it does this would take more time to explain than a blog provides, but suffice it to say that it involves clever use of inverse phase. Polk also showed the CSW 155 in-wall sub ($1400 with external amp).